Archive for June, 2010

Happy birthday Jay Schroeder. Jay played 4 seasons for the Redskins from 1984-87 appearing in 36 regular season games. #10 was a Pro Bowler in 1986 and was 24-7 as a starter for the Skins. Jay was the #3 overall pick in the MLB draft in 1979 by the Blue Jays. He played several seasons in minors before switching back to football and was drafted in the 3rd round of the 84’ draft by the Redskins, despite starting only one game at UCLA. Jay was traded to the Raiders before the 88’ season in exchange for Jim Lachey. In retirement Jay coaches high school football and is a motivational speaker. Happy 49th Mr. Schroeder.

Happy birthday Don Baylor. Don played 6 seasons for the Orioles from 1970-75. Don appeared in 511 games as an Oriole, batting .274 with 57 HR’s. His best season came in 1975 when he put up a .282-25-76 line. Don was traded to the A’s in 1976 in exchange for Reggie Jackson. Don would go on to play 19 seasons before retiring in 1988. Don retired with 338 home runs and was the 1979 MVP. In retirement Don has coached and managed in the majors and has recently been linked with the open Oriole’s managerial position. Happy 61st Mr. Baylor.

Happy birthday Jeff Conine. Jeff played 6 seasons for the Orioles from 1999-2006. As an Oriole, Jeff appeared in 751 games batting .287 with 79 HR’s. His best season came in 2001 when he batted .311-14-97. Jeff was a versatile player who played at all the corner infield and outfield positions. Jeff retired after the 2007 season as a 2-time All-Star. In retirement Jeff works in the front office for the Florida Marlins and competes in triathlons. Happy 44th Mr. Conine.

Happy birthday Jeff Malone. Jeff played 7 seasons for the Bullets from 1983-90, he’s one of my favorite players of all-time. Jeff was a 2-time All-Star during his Bullets tenure and averaged 20+ PPG. Jeff was traded to the Nuggets after the 1990 season in exchange for Pervis Ellison. In retirement Jeff has spent some time coaching in the NBA’s development league. Happy 49th Mr. Malone.

I’m a soccer poser and I’ll be the first to admit it. I’m jumping on the USA bandwagon and I’ve got the fever. Only days ago I posted this on Facebook for my status:

Sure I’ll be rooting for the U.S. in the World Cup but how can people get so crazy over soccer? The 1st 2 games ended in ties…a sport where no one wins! 1-1 & 0-0…barnburners. Give me the Skins/Boys week 1 and a 35-10 Skins win, that’s something to go crazy over. HTTR

Well, I was wrong…I admit it. People obviously go crazy over it and I haven’t missed a second of the last two games. My reaction to the winning goal in the last game was just like the thousands of people filmed in the video above. A similar reaction that I would have to a Cooley touchdown or a Romo sack. And the beautiful thing about the video above, is that I’m sure a majority of the fans watching these games are just like me…soccer posers. Hey, if a sport can make bars open at 7 in the morning and cause people to drink beer with their breakfast, it’s good enough for me. The USA takes on Ghana at 2:30 pm on Saturday, I highly suggest watching.

Happy birthday Dave Butz. Dave played 14 seasons for the Redskins 1975-88. #65 appeared in 203 regular season games for the Redskins and won 2 Super Bowls. Tackles and sacks weren’t official stats for most of Dave’s career but I can tell you this…he made a lot of them. Dave is one of the 70 Greatest Redskins and was a Pro Bowler in 1983. Dave once played 176 consecutive games and never missed a practice during that streak…or in other words he’s the opposite of Albert Haynesworth. In retirement Dave has served on the board for the NRA and also enjoys drinking and hunting. Happy 60th Mr. Butz!

Happy birthday Champ Bailey. Champ played 5 seasons for the Redskins from 1999-2003. Champ made the Pro Bowl in 4 of those seasons and appeared in all 80 games during that span. Champ intercepted 18 balls and had 314 tackles in DC. Champ is now a 9-time Pro Bowler and a 1st ballot Hall of Famer. Who knows…he’s in his contract year, maybe he will reunite with the Redskins and Shanahan in 2011. Happy 32nd Mr. Bailey.

The Redskins traded for Jammal Brown on Saturday and immediately penciled him in as the starter at right tackle. Brown was a 2-time Pro Bowler for the Saints in 2006 and 2008 at left tackle, but will shift to the right side of the Redskins line while rookie Trent Williams protects McNabb’s blindside. The aquisition of Brown also allows the Redskins to move the versatile Artis Hicks to right guard.

The roster now has some depth at the position with former starters Heyer and Williams now backing up the G/T positions (where they should be). Plus Capers, Robinson, Montgomery, E. Williams, Rinehart and Lichtensteiger battling for the additional roster spots.

As for Brown, he missed all of last year with injuries and has been unhappy with his contract. It will wind up costing the Skins (at most) a 3rd rounder next year and a 6th in 2012. I think it’s a great deal. We didn’t overpay for a guy who’s still just 29 yrs old and a Pro Bowl caliber player when healthy. The Redskins are also indicating that as of now, they aren’t going to sign him to a long term deal. This is another sign that things are different these days at Redskins Park, and I have to say…I. Like. It.

I thought it would be fun to go back and look at what we were saying about Haynesworth last March. For the most part, we all knew this would not end well. Here’s some links to several blogs from last year.

Homer McFanboy

Brian Murphy had a warning for Skins fans and entitled the Haynesworth post public service announcement. He led off the post with the following:

From all of us at Homer McFanboy to all of you in Redskins Nation we have just one word of advice – please proceed with caution.

after weighing the positive and negatives about Haynesworth the player, HM added this:

So feel free to talk yourself into this latest free agent acquisition or even talk smack to rival fans if you see fit. As for us, we’ll be proceeding with nothing more than cautious optimism until we see just how it all comes together on the field.

Mister Irrelevant

Jamie Mottram had 2 posts covering the Haynesworth signing, neither putting him on record as for or against it. He covered it in his own unique way that blog readers have come to love…he was a charming smart-ass. Oh yeah, this shirt was also born.

Don’t ruin this for me with the price tag either. This was my present from the Redskins. Our present. Today I just don’t care about long-term consequences. I am going to unwrap my present and play. Our defense is going to rock (theoretically). Our opponents will be hosting half of our defense behind their line on every play (hypothetically). DeAngelo Hall will capitalize on the additional pressure to the tune of double-digit interceptions (supposably).

I beg you, take a second to embrace the fact that two guys who are easily inked to start for us next year and represent upgrades at their positions are on the team. One of them even stomped on a Cowgirl’s head! We will wake up from this drunken orgy of careless spending soon enough. Our Walk of Shame will start on Draft Day (probably), and last through the regular season (God, I hope I’m wrong).

As free agency names come and go, in retrospect, decisions always seem so much clearer. The Jason Taylor deal as we all know now was a total bust, and Vinny is taking quite the lashing for it. Over the course of the season (hopefully years), it’ll become clear whether the Haynesworth signing was a bust or brilliance.

Whatever issues anyone may have about Albert Haynesworth not being a character guy need to be put to rest. I had the chance to meet the guy today after his press and he seemed to be a genuinely nice guy. In the press conference he discussed the issues of his past and I felt he did a great job of putting them to rest stating, “I’m starting a new chapter in my life after my incident and I’m looking forward to adding to it.”

Fatpickled

As for me? I was bitter that the Skins had signed 2 players for $150+ million, weeks after firing 30+ employees because the economy was slow. I did refer to Haynesworth as a “beast.” From Great News… The Recession Is Over:

So while I’m excited as a fan about the product that I will see on the field next fall, I’m not comfortable with the ethics of the organization. 40 employees at an average of 50k per year = 2 million. The teams salary cap for players is $127 million, which by smoke and mirrors the Skins will exceed. Add another 15-20 million for the coaching staff and front office. $155 million committed to just 2 players! It just doesn’t add up.

40 employees lives crushed, their spouses and children deeply effected. Is it all worth it? I think not. There is no grey area here, it’s black and white, there is a right and a wrong. And…it’s just wrong. If the Danny has any integrity he would pick up the phone and personally call the individuals he laid off. He should offer them their jobs back and apologize. But we all know that would never happen.

He’s at Morton’s wining and dining the next player, ordering off the menu, and dangling million$$ in their faces.

“You’re not going to remember Albert Haynesworth as a bust or the guy who had the Dallas incident or anything. You will remember him as a great player and that’s what I live for,” Haynesworth said during his press conference Friday. “You know, the money’s awesome. It’s great. But I’m out here, when I line up in front of somebody, when I put the helmet on, it’s to kick butt and it’s to make sure that guy knows that I’m the best player to play against.”